Title and commencement

1. These Regulations may be cited as the Medicines (Hormone Growth Promoters) (Prohibition of Use) Regulations 1988 and shall come into force on 13th April 1988.

Interpretation

2. In these Regulations -

"animals" means domestic animals of the bovine species, swine, sheep, goats, solipeds and poultry, and wild animals of these species and wild ruminants which have been raised on a holding;

"hormone growth promoters" means any substance which has an oestrogenic, androgenic or gestagenic action;

"injection" does not include implantation;

"therapeutic treatment" means the treatment of a fertility problem diagnosed by a veterinary surgeon or veterinary practitioner in an animal not intended for fattening;

"veterinary practitioner" means a person registered in the supplementary veterinary register; and

"veterinary surgeon" means a person registered in the register of veterinary surgeons.

Prohibition of administration to animals of hormone growth promoters

3.-(1) Subject to paragraph (2) below, no person shall administer, or knowingly cause or permit to be administered, to animals, by any means whatsoever, any hormone growth promoters.

(2) The prohibition in paragraph (1) above does not apply to the administration -

(a)by a veterinary surgeon or veterinary practitioner -

(i)for therapeutic treatment in the form of an injection of oestradiol-17-;β, progesterone or testosterone or those derivatives of these substances which readily yield the parent compound on hydrolysis after absorption at the site of application; or

(ii)for the termination of unwanted gestation or the improvement of fertility; or

(b)by, or under the direct responsibility of, a veterinary surgeon or veterinary practitioner for the synchronisation of oestrus or the preparation of donors or recipients for the implantation of embryos.

Offences

4. A person who without reasonable excuse contravenes regulation 3 of these Regulations shall be guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding £,000 or on conviction on indictment to a fine.

Defence available to person charged with an offence

5. In any proceedings for an offence under these Regulations, it shall be a defence for the person charged to prove that he took all reasonable precautions and exercised all due diligence to avoid the commission of such an offence.

Supplementary

6.-(1) Where an offence under these Regulations which has been committed by a body corporate is proved to have been committed with the consent or connivance of, or to be attributable to any neglect on the part of, any director, manager, secretary or other similar officer of the body corporate or any person who was purporting to act in such capacity he as well as the body coporate shall be deemed to be guilty of an offence and shall be liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly.

(2) When the affairs of a body corporate are managed by its members the provisions of paragraph (1) above shall apply in relation to the acts and default of a member in connection with his functions of management as if he were a director of the body corporate.

Revocation

7. The Medicines (Hormone Growth Promoters) (Prohibition of Use) Regulations 1986(3) are hereby revoked.

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations re-enact the Medicines (Hormone Growth Promoters) (Prohibition of Use) Regulations 1986 which were made to implement in part Council Directive 85/649/EEC which was declared void by the Court of Justice of the European Communities in Case 68/86 on 23 February 1988.

The Regulations prohibit the administration of hormone growth promoters to animals except for therapeutic treatment or for certain other purposes concerning fertility or reproduction (regulation 3).

The Regulations implement in part Council Directives 81/602/EEC (OJ No. L222, 7.8.81, p.32) and 88/146/EEC (OJ No. L70, 16.3.88, p.16) concerning the use in livestock farming of certain substances having a hormonal action. The latter Directive was adopted by the Council to reinstate the provisions of Directive 85/649/EEC.